


The Divine Shifter

by amyanarchy



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Action, Adventure, Developing Relationship, Drama, Family, Friendship, Funny, Gen, Humor, Mystery, Romance, Sam and Dean's Sister, Sherlock References, Sis Fic, Thriller, Winchester Sister
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-05-27
Updated: 2014-10-25
Packaged: 2017-12-13 02:35:01
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 10
Words: 12,623
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/818954
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/amyanarchy/pseuds/amyanarchy
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sam, Dean and Jill Winchester are on a case that involves ordinary, loving guys "offing" their significant others, and then themselves. Looks like there is a shape shifter in town. A smart shifter that has been killing for a long time.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Babe Motel

Jill leaned back against the windshield of her brother’s car. The 67 Chevy Impala could use a wash she thought, as her blue jeans now held a thin layer of dust and dirt from lying on the hood. What the hell could be taking them so long? She enjoyed working jobs with her brothers, but this was the boring part. Waiting around while they interviewed the “clients.” She was too young to pass off as a Fed.

Suddenly there was a quick gust of wind from behind her and she slid off the hood to look around. “Castiel.” The angel was standing just behind her next to the car, appearing out of thin air as he often did. “Hello Jillian.” The angel’s blue eyes shone so intensely that Jill often wondered whether it was because he was Heavenly, or maybe his vessel was simply bright eyed. He began to ask her how she was but the look on her face stopped him. She was staring at his trench coat, which until now had usually been dirty and tan colored. Now it was soaked in blood.

“Castiel what happened?” She stepped toward him and reached out, but dropped her hands quickly. The angel often gave the impression that he didn’t like to be touched, and Jill assumed this time would be no different. The blood however did not appear to be his own. “Angels.” He replied. “The war in heaven is still raging, though I expect that will not last much longer.”

He walked past her towards the front of the car and leaned back against the grill. He seemed troubled, although Jill always found it hard to place the look on Castiel’s frequently emotionless face. She sat next to him and opened her mouth to speak. “Where are Sam and Dean?” Castiel interrupted.  
“House across the road.” Jill replied gesturing to her right. “Working a case, getting the facts, you know.” Castiel nodded and looked back down at his hands. He didn’t often hang around like this unless it was important, especially when he had a civil war in heaven to worry about. Again Jill peered at him out of the corner of her eye and tried to read his face. All she could really see was how blue his eyes were. Everything else was a mystery. “How’d you find us?” She asked. Her brothers and her were supposed to be hidden from all angels, courtesy of some Enochian carvings on each of their ribcages, Castiel’s way of protecting them. "I called Dean a moment ago."

“Hey, Cas!” The angel and Jill turned to see the brothers coming down the end of Mrs. Wu’s driveway. Dean, the older brother, had nicknamed the angel ‘Cas’ almost immediately after meeting him. “Hello Dean. Sam.” Castiel nodded toward the younger brother who nodded back as he stripped his jacket off and tossed it through the window of the impala into the front seat. “Can we continue this on the way back to the motel? I don’t need Mrs. Wu getting suspicious and calling the real cops.” Sam said with annoyance, violently loosening his tie. Jill couldn’t help but grin. She thought she knew why he might be annoyed. “It’s a shifter right? Was I right?”  
“In the car.” He replied. She looked over at Dean who winked back and jumped in the Impala. “Cas you comin’ with?” Dean leaned out the window at the angel who hadn’t jumped up to hop in the car with the rest of them. He was staring straight up at the clouds, this time a definite strained look on his face. “Perhaps I will meet you later.” And he was gone.

Jill was sprawled out in the back, one leg up and stretched along the seat, watching Sam in the side view mirror as the impala sped along the highway. “So, a shifter huh.” She tried not to sound too smug. She saw Sam roll his eyes in the mirror and smirked. “Yeah, looks like a good old fashioned shape shifter to us.” Dean answered. “Good call Jay.” Dean nicknamed everyone. Cas, Sammy, Jay. “Jay’s a boys name.” Jill replied.  
“Nope, it’s a letter.” Dean said sarcastically. “Let’s ask college boy over here.”  
“Okay how’d you know it was a shape shifter?” Sam turned around in his seat getting them back on track. “We’ve been in town less than 24 hours and you just go, ‘It’s def’ a shifter guys, for reals.’”  
“I don’t sound like that! I don’t say stupid shit like ‘for reals,’ when have I ever…”  
“Okay ladies,” Dean interrupted. “That’s enough.”

They pulled into the motel parking lot twenty minutes later and Jill hopped out before they came to a full stop. “Yo.” Dean called. She turned and he handed her a credit card through the window. “One room, two doubles, you know the drill.” Jill looked down at the name on the card. D. Hasselhoff. She rolled her eyes. “Okay but you two are sharing tonight.” She put the card in her pocket and sighed, dreading the thought that she might have to explain why her parents named her D. Hasselhoff.

She strolled across the parking lot towards the office. The motel was a bit run down but they’d seen worse. It had a certain charm to it, well at least the outside did. Some vines weaved their way up walls and around cylinders and some birds were chirping in a big tree overlooking the parking lot. She shaded her eyes from the sun as she peered up into the tree in search for the birds. A bell jingled when she pulled the door open and a middle-aged man behind the counter looked up from a magazine. “Hi, one room please. 3 nights, two double beds if you can.”  
“Sure thing honey.” He looked out the window at where Sam and Dean had parked the impala and looked back at Jill suspiciously. “You with them?”  
“Oh, yes.” She replied and gave him what she hoped was an innocent smile. “Do you take credit?” The man smiled back at Jill and took her card. She hoped he didn’t say anything about the name, why couldn’t Dean have handed her one of the other ones. One that was less suspicious, like Eastwood or Tarrantino. The man smirked as he handed the card back. “Don’t get many Hasselhoffs through here.” Jill’s stomach dropped.  
“Oh yeah.” She laughed. “No relation.” He laughed with her and handed her a key with a number 8 on it. “Thanks.” She walked outside back towards the car. “Room 8.” She told her brothers.

It was a fair sized room, had the two double beds she requested, a bathroom and a tiny kitchen type area. They had stayed in worse motels. “Nice digs.” Dean said and threw his bag on the bed nearest the door. He always took the bed near the door, unless it was his and Jill’s turn to share, then Sammy took the bed by the door. Jill assumed this was her big brothers’ way of keeping her a little further away from possible harm. She was always bugging for a room of her own, but often the things they were hunting decided to hunt them back and it made her brothers nervous. “By the way,” She quipped, “the desk clerk, total Bates.”  
“Did you say Babe?” Dean hopped on the bed and leaned against the headrest pulling his feet up. He peeked over at the side table that held a small quarter operated machine and perked up. “Score! Get his number?”  
“No I did not say babe I said Bates, like Norman Bates, psych- never mind.”

Sam was unpacking his bag at the table next to the window and setting up his laptop. “Mrs. Wu had some very interesting things to say about her neighbor that’s for sure.” He started explaining as he pulled some books out of his bag. Jill sat down across from him. “Oh yeah? Like the fact that he can pull his skin off and look like Dicaprio underneath if he were so inclined?”  
“HA” came from the bed behind them.  
“What she said was that the Teller’s were a normal couple. They had been married for a year and never had any problems. They were quiet, cheerful, and Christopher always helped Mrs. Wu shovel her driveway when it snowed.”  
“Awww!” Dean squealed as he rustled around in his pocket searching for spare change.  
“Yeah.” Sam continued. “Until a week ago when Mrs. Wu said hello to Chris one morning on his way out and he ignored her. Really out of character for the guy. Then she hadn’t seen Michelle for a few days which is when she went over to check on her and found Mrs. Teller dead in the master bedroom. Really gruesome too.”

“Yeah that’s what the paper said, really gruesome death.” Jill pulled the newspaper clipping out of her pocket and unfolded it. The headline read Gruesome Murder was Work of a True Monster. Oh they had no idea. A rumble came from the bed behind them and Sam and Jill turned to see the bed shaking underneath Dean who had his arms folded behind his head and his eyes shut, a delightful little smile on his face.

Jill wandered outside to get a pop from the machine and to leave her eldest brother to his massage or, whatever. Sam followed her out and leaned against the machine. He was nearly two feet taller than her and he hovered over her with a heavy feeling in the air. Jill tried focusing on the soda choices. “Are you brooding?” She finally asked and selected a 7up. He sighed and she straightened up. “Jill, all we had was a nasty death and a suspicious old woman. No witnesses. We haven’t even investigated the house yet. How did you kn-.” He stopped and narrowed his eyes at Jill who looked sideways, popped the tab on her drink and made to sidestep around him. “Oh no, Jill, you didn’t” He put his hand out stopping her in her tracks.  
“What?” She tried to sound truly confused but her brother was no dummy. He had gone to Stamford after all. Sam narrowed his eyes further and Jill’s stomach knotted up. “Allright, I’ll explain inside.” She caved.

When they re-entered room 8 Dean was sitting back on his knees scrounging his pockets for more quarters. “No, no! Nuh-uh! Enough is enough its getting bad!” Jill smacked her brother. “Jesus Jay!” Dean rubbed his arm and looked over at Sam. “Nope. I’m not enabling you either.” He said. “As a matter of fact from now on it will be a prerequisite that whatever motel we stay at NOT have one of those things.” He motioned towards the machine that violently vibrated the bed whenever coins were inserted.

Jill smirked and walked over to the next bed were she had dropped her bag and unzipped it to root around inside. She pulled out a little jar and tossed it over to Sam. “Ugh! You did!” He screwed his face up at the contents of the jar.  
“What is it?” Dean asked and Sam threw the jar on the bed.  
“It ain’t strawberry jam.”  
Dean peered through the glass for a moment at the detached ‘human’ ear inside and then set it on the table. He glared over at Jill. “Where did you get that?”  
She sat down at the table. “The Tellers’ backyard. It was right outside their door.”

Both of her brothers glared at her. “You were supposed to be waiting at the car.” Sam stated.  
“I know but God how long does it take to interview a bloody 90 year old woman when she didn’t even see anything!” Jill exclaimed.  
“She made us tea!” Dean shouted back. “And-.”  
“Look I only had a quick look around the perimeter, I didn’t go inside, it was broad daylight and you were both less than 50 feet away, I don’t see the problem. I mean Jesus Christ I’VE BEEN SALTING AND BURNING CORPSES SINCE I WAS EIGHT!”

There was a banging on the wall from the room next door that silenced the three of them. “Don’t wake the neighbors.” Dean replied and smirked. “It was a good find.” He added and exchanged a look with Sam. Sam breathed in heavily and added “Yes it was, just… let us know next time. In case some monster decides to stick around.”


	2. High 5

Jill loved having the bed to herself. She would stretch out to almost unnatural lengths and sleep quite contently. They took turns sharing but sometimes one of them would resort to the floor or even sleep in the car. Jill didn’t mind sleeping in the car but most motel owners would get right pissed off about it thinking he was being ripped off. Of course it didn’t really matter whether one of them slept in the car or shared a bed in their room, they were still usually ripping the guy off. Hunters don’t exactly get a pension with benefits, or any salary for that matter. So they’d have to hustle pool here, run credit card scams there, whatever they needed to do. Hence the Hasslehoff name they were staying under this time.

_Jill walked along the long wooden dock and stared down at her reflection in the cool water below. She liked how her thick dark hair wrapped around her neck and hung down beside her face. In the rippled water it looked almost pretty. She smiled at herself then sat down and pulled off her shoes and socks. She rolled her jeans up to just below the knee and dunked both feet in the water. If felt really good to have them in the cool lake while the warm sun shone on her face. She closed one eye against the bright sun and peeked through the other half opened eye up at the perfectly blue sky. This was the life. She looked across the lake that was surrounded by dark green forest. Not a soul in sight, yet teeming with life. She decided to take a dip. She didn’t get to go swimming very often. She stood up and pulled her clothes off, there was a beautiful breeze but it wasn’t at all cold. Taking a few steps back first, she ran to the edge of the dock pushed off and dove with her hands out in front of her, head first into the ripples. She went down, down and down. The light shone through the water, breaking up around her and bouncing off her skin. She wasn’t holding her breath, she wasn’t even breathing. It was like she was just part of the water, her hair and extremities reaching out from her body and dancing slowly with the ripples._

_She looked all around and saw nothing but water, darker in the distance. When she looked down however she saw the light bouncing off of something bright. She strained to see what it was, debated whether or not to kick out and swim further down, but before she could do so the bright spot became two, and began rising towards her. It only took a moment to realize they were a set of eyes and another moment to see the face and body they belonged too. Floating up towards her was Michelle Teller, the beautiful woman whose picture she had viewed in her newspaper clipping. Only now she wasn’t beautiful. Her face was extremely pale, her throat had not one but multiple slits across it courtesy of her murderer. Her body was covered in blood, bright red blood that was spreading out into the surrounding water, which was darkening more as she got closer. Jill stayed in place in the water staring down in horror as the body approached her from below, a strained look on its face as it reached forward for her. Jill could not help herself, she reached her own arms downwards to accept her, but that was when she felt a different set of arms under her shoulders pulling her upwards towards the surface of the lake. Above the surface she took a deep breath of air and spun around to look into the eyes of her friend Castiel. He was in the water next to her. “Hello Jill. I’m sorry for interrupting your dream but I needed to talk to you. Where are you?” “Uh, Tacoma Motel. Room_ 8.”

Jill’s eyes snapped open and she cried out in surprise at Castiel who was hovering over her. “Cas! What are you doing here?” She looked around and saw Sam wake up at the sound and Dean, continue to snore. She rolled her eyes. Cas remained hovered looking down at Jill. “Um Cas. Can I get up?”

“Oh. Yes. My apologies.” Castiel backed away and Jill sat up rubbing her eyes. “I am also sorry for interrupting your dream, but you weren’t answering your phone.”

“It’s okay it was more of a nightmare.” Jill grabbed her cell from the desk next to the bed. “I don’t have any missed calls.” Castiel moved to the window and looked outside, ignoring the statement. “A man’s body was found late last night in the park not far from the Teller residence. I believe it is Christopher Teller.” He stated. Sam sat up straight. “Really? Dean wake up!” He chucked a pillow at his brother who grunted and rolled over.

“What!”

“Cas has a lead on our case.” Jill replied. Leaping out of bed. Dean started stretching.

“No Dean its okay, I’ll take Jill to the lab.” Said Sam.

“YES!” Jill pumped her fist in the air and skipped to the bathroom to get ready. Dean gave Sam a questioning look.

“She’s 20 dude, nobody’s going to believe she’s a fed.”

“I’m 21 asshole.” Jill yelled through the closed door.

“She’s a student from the university and I’m training her?” Sam offered. Dean hummed. He looked sideways at Sam.

“I get to sleep?”

Sam sighed. “Yes.”

“Yeah sure, take her!” Dean concluded and pushed his face back into the pillow.

Castiel looked awkwardly around the room. “May I come to?” Sam and Dean exchanged looks of surprise. Jill came out of the bathroom having quickly brushed her teeth and hair. “Yes of course you can come Cas.” She smiled. She always preferred spending time with other people besides her brothers. Even if Castiel wasn’t technically a person. “Oh screw this I’m not going to miss this.” Said Dean throwing off the covers.

The three Winchesters and angel stepped out of the Impala in the parking lot of the hospital. Sam and Dean had their signature black suits and really did look the part. Maybe a little young for federal agents but they were pretty convincing. Castiel was wearing his regular trench coat. Jill had on a buttoned white shirt and black slacks. She was excited to finally get to participate. She had burned Wendigos, exercised demons, beheaded vamps and hunted many other supernatural creatures with her brothers. Even saved their asses once or twice. This was different; it was like a coming of age thing for her. Some kids were going to their prom or to college; Jill was interviewing doctors in order to determine what kind of creature had killed their patients. Jill followed her brothers into the building. Dean went to the desk to charm the receptionist and Sam whispered to her and Castiel some instructions. Follow their lead and pretend to look like you belong there, easy enough. A doctor greeted them at the desk a few moments later. Sam and Dean flashed their fake FBI badges at the doc and introduced themselves. “Agents Mulder and Scully, FBI. Our associates.” Dean nodded in their direction. Castiel nodded and gave the man a blank look. Jill smiled and nodded.

“Associates?” The doctor looked back at Dean, unconvinced.

“Students from the university. Undergoing some training. Will that be a problem?” Sam stepped forward, towering over the doctor. Jill saw him swallow.

“Oh, no. Not a problem. This way.” Dean turned and winked at Cas and Jill, Jill grinned back and followed eagerly. “So what interest does the FBI have in a murder suicide?” The doctor asked, leading them down the hall.

“Murder suicide?” Sam repeated.

“Well yeah.” The doctor continued. “The guy kills his wife, then is found a couple nights later in the park, self inflicted gun shot wound to the temporal lobe. That’ll do it.”

“Self inflicted huh.” Jill could hear Dean’s eyes roll. “Is that your medical opinion or your personal opinion?” The doctor stopped at the mortuary door.

“Well, my medical opinion. But it makes sense too-”

“Well we appreciate your medical opinion doctor but why don’t you leave the theories to the professionals.”

The doctor blushed. “Yes sir. Well, um, the body is just through here sir.”

“Thank you. We can take it from here.” Dean pushed past him into the room, Sam, Cas and Jill followed.

“You know Dean, we could have asked him some more questions.” Sam said.

“He didn’t know anything.”

Now Jill rolled her eyes. “Yeah I’m sure the doctor didn’t have a clue about anything regarding the body we are about to-”

“I could have left you at the Bates Motel!” Dean reminded. Jill shut up and glared at him. Sam walked over to the table where Christopher Teller’s body lay and folded back the sheet covering his head. “Definitely a gun shot. But I couldn’t tell you whether or not it was self-inflicted. Should have asked the doc how he could tell.” Sam shot Dean an annoyed glance, which Dean ignored. “The guy might have panicked after seeing his own wanted posters around town. Thought there was no other way out.”

“Hell no!” Jill added. “The shifter probably killed him and made it look like a suicide, knowing that when his body was found they would close the case.”

“But there’s no way to know that for sure until we find the shifter. This is a small town but it could be anywhere. Hell, it could have left town.” Dean was frustrated. They were all getting frustrated. Castiel walked over to the body and placed a hand on its chest. After a couple seconds Dean cleared his throat and said “um, Cas?” Castiel drew his hand back. “This man did not kill himself. His soul was pure and was transferred to heaven upon his death.”

“So the shifter got him?” Jill asked.

“Yes Jill, the shifter probably got him. Way to ruin the moment.” Dean strolled towards the door and Sam unfolded the sheet back over Christopher Teller’s head. “Guess we’re done here, thanks Cas.”

“It is not a problem.” Castiel responded. Sam and Dean stopped to have a quick word with the doctor before they left. Jill continued into the parking lot, Cas following behind her, to wait at the Impala. She leaned against the back door and slipped a ponytail off her wrist to chuck her hair up and out of the way. Cas stopped in front of her, staring. He often stared at Jill, at her brothers too. Actually the few angels she had met had staring problems also. Probably didn’t realize it was slightly uncomfortable. “So Cas.” She interrupted the awkwardness. “Any idea where this shifter is? I mean, can you work your mojo or something and locate him?” Castiel sighed. “No I cannot work my mojo and find the shifter for you, I am sorry. But I’m sure the three of you will find him.”

Jill smiled. “Well good job in there anyway.” She held her hand up for a high five, which Castiel considered for a moment before also reaching up and pulling her hand down to hang by their waists, without letting go. Her smile turned into a sideways puzzled look, but Castiel grinned back and held her hand tightly. “Hmm, don’t know what a high five is?” She smirked slightly. Cas frowned a little but Jill gave him an encouraging squeeze, after all he had done nothing wrong.

“AWWWW!” Dean and Sam had strolled up behind them, Dean grinning and Sam smiling. Jill immediately withdrew her hand and blushed, “Piss off.” Castiel turned around confused. “What is wrong?”

“Nothing Cas, there is nothing wrong about the way the two of you feel.” Dean chuckled and circled to the driver’s side of the car. “You coming with?” Cas gave Jill a questioning look and answered, “No, I have a matter in Heaven to attend to. Perhaps I will catch up with you later.” And he was gone. Jill leaned forward from the backseat to turn the music up. She didn’t want to hear her brother’s teasing, but luckily they didn’t bother anyway. They were discussing possible “shifter dens” and where they might find their monster’s hide out. Jill tried to contribute but instead thought back to Castiel and his adorable awkwardness. Of course, how would an angel know what a high five is? I mean, they don’t exactly strut around heaven slapping hands every time a soul is saved, do they? It’s not like, _Hey Cas… way to grip that soul tight and raise it from perdition, put ‘er there!_  She smirked to herself and looked up into the mirror where Dean was looking right back with an eyebrow raised. “Huh, sorry?” She asked giving her head a shake.

“Earth to Jill.” Dean answered.

“We were thinking about going to the park next. The one Christopher Teller’s body was found in.” Sam began. “Ask around, see if anybody saw anything yesterday or last night.”

“Okay. You two can talk to parents and I can ask any kids around if they saw anything weird. I doubt anything happened during the day but you never know.”

“Good plan. But first, we get some pie.”


	3. ❤ i ❤

They stopped at a small diner in town called Mrs. Hudson's Café. It was a nice little place, and busy which meant the food wasn’t bad. They grabbed a booth in the corner next to the window. “Hi there, what can I get you fellas today?” A bouncy, blonde waitress smiled widely and chewed on her gum. Jill grimaced. _Fellas?_

“Well hello there.” Dean started. “How are you doing?” Jill and Sam exchanged looks.

The blonde grinned even wider. “Fine and how are you doing?”

“Oh I’m just fine.” Dean smiled. Jill gave him a kick under the table and his eye twitched. “I’d love a bacon cheeseburger and a pepsi.” She scribbled his order down in what Jill was sure was big loopy lettering with little hearts in place of the dots above her _i’s_. “And for you handsome?” She asked Sam.

He smiled politely. “I’ll have a greek salad please, and water is fine.”

She smiled and turned to Jill. “Salad for you too?” She smiled, but not as widely at Jill.

“No, I’ll have a large plate of poutine.” Jill pushed her menu across the table. “And 7up.”

“Coming right up!” The waitress bounced away and Dean turned in his seat to watch.

“Ugh that was horrifying. Kill me if I ever act like that.” Jill put her finger in her throat and turned to look out the window. Sam smirked and pulled out his laptop. Dean skimmed the desert menu for pie flavors and Jill leaned over to see what Sam was researching. He was on the local newspaper’s website. The waitress came back with their food in a flash. “Anything else while I’m here?” She sang.

“Well it’d be mighty kind of you if ya warmed up a couple slices of this famous apple pie I’ve been hearing about.” Dean grinned.

“Sure thing darlin’!” And she bounced away again.

“Could you be more disgusting?” Jill asked, digging into her fries.

“Hey, the ladies don’t complain as much as you do.” He answered, sending the waitress a wink from across the room.

“I hope your apple pie is worth it.”

“Worth what?” He snapped.

“Herp-”

“Guys check this out.” Sam interrupted, turning his laptop sideways so they could see. “There was another strange death almost a year ago. This time a couple who were passing through town.”

“Murder suicide?” Dean asked through a mouthful of burger.

“Yep. And the year before that, a guy killed his girlfriend then hung himself.” Jill pulled the computer closer. Sam grimaced as it got within cheese and gravy distance. “The reporter interviewed a friend of the guy. She said she couldn’t believe he would ever do anything like this. The nicest guy, blah blah, very out of character, blah blah. Hmm.” She pushed the laptop back.

“So it looks like the shifter’s been in town for a while.” Dean concluded. The waitress interrupted them with three plates of pie and a fresh layer of lipstick. “Thanks doll.” Dean winked. She bounced away again. “Lovely.” Jill snorted.

“Very.” Dean unrolled his napkin to reveal “Nicki’s” phone number scribbled inside. Nicki with little hearts above her _i’s_.


	4. A Lead

They pulled into the park half an hour after lunch. “Okay we should separate. Jill, try not to look like a creeper while talking to these people’s kids.” Jill shot Dean a look.

“We’ll ask around, see if any of the parents were here yesterday.” Sam added. They still had their suits on and were going to play the fed roles again, but Jill had quickly changed into jeans and a tee, more inconspicuous. People do get very antsy about their kids talking to strangers. She watched her brothers head off toward the picnic tables and turned to scour the park. She saw a boy who looked about 8 years old spinning in a swing, so she set off towards the swing set. She sat down next to the boy. “Hi.” She said. He peered out of the corner of his eye but didn’t turn his head. “I see they still stress the don’t talk to strangers thing in school, that’s good.” She muttered. He shuffled his feet in the sand. “Hey, bet I can go way higher than you.” Jill suggested. His eyes opened a bit wider. “Unless,” she began pumping her legs, “you’re chicken?”

The kid spun in his swing. “Nuh-uh!” He yelled.

“Well then lets see what you’ve got!” _Well that did it_ , she thought. He started leaning and kicking furiously and Jill hurried to speed up to him. “Wow you are good!” She raised her voice over the creaking of the swings.

“Yeah I know!” The little boy yelled back.

“Yeah, you can go way higher than I can!” Jill started slowing down until she came to a stop and twirled the chains around above her head so that the swing would spin with her in the seat when she released it. _Okay, you are having too much fun_ , she thought to herself. She saw the boy slowing down beside her. “My name is Jill.” She tried.

The boy shifted in his seat a little. “I’m Sean.” He replied a little nervously, but looked up and returned Jill’s smile. Jill took a deep breath, looking around for any anxious parents wondering who their son was talking to.

“Do you come to the park often Sean?” _Yeah that didn’t sound creepy at all…_

“Yeah sometimes.” Sean said, kicking a rock across the sand. “Yesterday too.”

Jill's heart sped up. “Yesterday, really?”

“Yep!” Sean jumped up and took off towards the monkey bars. Jill hopped off her swing and followed, looking around for her brothers. They were talking to a woman next to the slide. Sean had climbed up on the bars in record speed and was hanging upside down beneath them from his legs. “NO HANDS!” He screeched.

“That’s so awesome!” Jill said excitedly. “So, when you were here yesterday-”

“Come up!” Sean interrupted.

“Oh.” Jill grabbed the bars and slowly hauled herself up with her arms. _I’ve got to lay off the peanut butter cups_. She sat on top of the bars. “So when you were here yesterday, were there a lot of other people here?”

Sean pulled himself through the bars to sit next to her. “Not really.” Jill reached into her pocket and pulled out a newspaper clipping with Christopher Teller’s picture on it, the man who was suspected of killing his wife and himself, and the one the Winchesters suspected the shifter was impersonating.

“Did you see this guy here yesterday?” She asked, folding the paper so the article was hidden.

Sean snatched it and peered at the picture thoughtfully. “I think maybe, he went into the woods.” He pointed towards the opposite end of the park where there was a dense looking forest.

“Are you sure?” Jill asked, taking the paper back. Sean slipped backwards and dangled from the bars with his legs and Jill jumped down next to him.

“Yep!” He exclaimed. “Because I wanted to go exploring but mom said I couldn’t go in the woods.” He frowned remembering the refusal.

“Sean!”

Jill turned and saw a woman wandering over towards them.

“Gotta go, bye!” Sean flipped off the bars and hopped away. Jill saw the woman give her an odd look over her shoulder and grab her son’s hand, probably going to give him a lecture on talking to strangers on the way home. Jill turned and peered in the direction of the woods. She heard Sam’s overbearing voice in her head, _“Let us know next time in case some monster decides to stick around.”_ She looked where she last saw her brothers at the slide. Dean was still talking to the woman, who had taken her hair out of her ponytail and was laughing at something he had said. Jill figured it probably wasn’t that funny. Sam was talking to a couple near the picnic tables. She looked back at the woods. _Oh what the hell_. And she started towards them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I would love any feedback guys! Positive OR Negative!


	5. Stuck!

“Okay thank you for your time.” Sam closed his notepad and got up from the picnic table. Nobody seemed to remember seeing Christopher Teller at the park the other day. Walking towards Dean he turned and scanned the park for his sister, but she wasn’t in sight. An annoying giggle interrupted him.

“Oh really? An Aquarius? I’m an Aquarius too.”

Sam rolled his eyes. “Sorry to interrupt, but we should get going.” Sam smiled at the woman Dean had wasted half an hour talking to, probably not at all about the case. The woman glared at him.

“Well you have my card, don’t be afraid to give us a call if you hear anything.” Dean gave her a wink.

“And you have my number!” She declared as they started towards the Impala. “Call me!”

Once they were out of earshot Sam asked, “Did you even show her a picture of the guy?”

“Mind your business.” Dean answered, then changed the subject. “Where has our lovely, level-headed sister got too?”

Sam looked around again. He expected Jill to be waiting at the car, which she wasn’t. He frowned and took his phone out of his pocket.

 

Jill was on her belly, crawling army style under a tree that had snapped and fallen over. The branches were huge and too think to climb over, and she couldn’t go around it because of the poison ivy. _Well this was a great idea._ She thought. Then her phone started buzzing. “Perfect!” She cried. She rolled over under the log on to her back and fished out her cell. Sam Winchester calling. “What!”

“Where are you?”

“Woods.” Jill grunted.

“What!”

Jill balanced her phone next to her ear with her shoulder and used her hands to reach up and grip the log. She pulled herself to the other side. “I said-”

“I heard what you said, where did you go in? I don’t see a path.”

“There isn’t one. Well it’s grown over and really dense so don’t bother.”

Sam sighed. Jill heard Dean’s sarcastic voice, “this is no time for flower picking Jay.”

As her brothers bickered she rolled her eyes and could make out an object in the grass beside her. She rolled back onto her stomach and shuffled over a little to get a better look. She nearly threw up when she realized what it was. “ARGH!”

“What? What! Jill what is it?”

“Puke inducing vile!” She shuffled back in the opposite direction. “Looks like the shifter has shifted again. There’s a meat suit abandoned in the woods. Oh its nasty.”

Sam was laughing and filling Dean in on the other end, when she heard a twig snap behind her. Jill froze. She pulled the phone away from her ear to listen. Nothing.

She tried to look over her shoulder but the tree was in the way. _Awesome._

“Is that you guys?”

Before Sam could answer she heard another twig snap, louder and closer. _Sooo awesome._ She thought to herself. _Hopefully it’s just a bear, or_ _pack of wolves, or-_

“OH, F-” Jill let out a scream as something very strong grabbed her ankles and pulled her backwards underneath the log. She kicked and tried to grab at the tree helplessly, pulling some bark away as she was dragged along on her stomach. She came to an abrupt halt and rolled very quickly onto her back while pulling a silver knife from the inside of her boot and brandishing it above her from the ground. “Back, shifter freak!” She hollered.

Castiel stared down at her, head slightly tilted to the side. “Jill." He said calmly. "Are you okay?”

“Oh my God!” Jill hopped up and brushed the dirt from her legs. Castiel frowned. “Sorry Cas, but Jesus!” The frown remained.

“Sorry. You scared the crap out of me, what are you doing?”

“You appeared to be in need of assistance. Your brothers are looking for you and you were stuck under a tree.”

“I’m not stuck!”

“No, you are free now.”

“I WASN'T stuck!”

“JILL!” Cries were coming from not far away. Seconds later Sam and Dean had burst through the brush with their weapons drawn. “Oh, hey Cas.” Dean holstered his gun.

“You screamed?” Sam asked rushing to Jill’s side.

“No, maybe yelled a little, I was surprised.”

“You screamed. Could hear it from the edge of the woods.” Dean teased.

Jill rolled her eyes.

“She was stuck under this tree.” Cas explained.

Jill threw her hands in the air in annoyance.

“So where is this puke inducing vile?” Dean asked looking around.

“Other side of the log that I was NOT stuck under.” Jill glared at Cas.

“Why didn’t you just go around?” Dean asked, and started pulling at the leaves in the way.

Jill smirked and after a moment answered, “Because I wanted to avoid the poison ivy.”

Dean drew his hands back and shot Jill a death look. Sam walked over to the tree and peered over it. He was tall so he could look down into the grass on the other side. “Oh yeah. The shifter shed its skin here. And looks like it continued in that direction. Wonder what’s through there.”

“The motel you are staying at.” Cas answered.

They all looked at him. “Really?” Dean asked. “Great. Coincidence, I hope.”

Instead of trucking through the rest of the woods, they went through the park to take the Impala back to the motel. Cas joined them in the car, which Jill kind of liked. She found it interesting that he would always gaze out the window when they weren’t talking, taking in the scenery. Being an angel for millions of years, Jill figured he’d have already seen it all.

They pulled into the motel parking lot and filed out of the car. Jill noticed the motel manager peering curiously out the window at the four of them.

“I better go introduce Cas to Bates.” She said.

“Why?” Dean asked, looking over at the office.

“Because he is giving us weird looks, what if he calls the cops?”

“Whatever.” Dean said and unlocked their room. He and Sam went inside and Jill led Cas towards the office. The manager was no longer looking out the window. They stepped into the office, the bell above the door jingling as it opened and closed.

The manager came out from the back room and smiled. “Hasselhoff!”

Jill smiled back. “Yeah! Just thought I’d introduce you to, um, my cousin. Cas.” The man turned to Cas and gave a small nod before offering his hand out for Castiel to shake. Cas considered it a moment, looked towards Jill, then slapped the man’s hand as a low 5. Jill had to bite her lip to keep from laughing.

“I hope it’s okay if he stays with us.” Jill tried her best to look sweet.

The man placed his hands on the desk and looked Cas up and down. “Well, four people in that one room is a bit crowded. Are you sure you wouldn’t like another room?” He asked.

Jill frowned.

“We have plenty available, I can even discount it for you.”

Jill considered the offer. Not the discount, it didn’t matter since they weren’t technically paying for the room anyway, but the thought of a room to herself was enticing. “You know, that would be lovely of you!”

The man grinned and grabbed another key from the wall behind him. “It’s no trouble at all my dear!”

Jill smiled and nudged Cas, who was definitely not smiling. The man offered the room key to Jill but Cas snatched it from him instead. They stepped out of the office and Jill saw the man glaring at them as they left. She took the key from Cas. “Snatchy! What was that about?”

Castiel looked over his shoulder at the office. “He is a very odd man.” He stated.

“He probably thinks the same thing about you. Cas Hasselhoff.” She burst out laughing and Cas followed her, with a confused look on his face, to her brothers’ room.


	6. The Yellow Face

Sam and Dean were both already passed out when Jill and Castiel came in. Jill pulled the picture of Christopher Teller out of her back pocket and tacked it to the wall where she had been collecting bits and pieces about their case. She liked pinning newspaper clippings and other case info on the wall. Having it all spread out in front of her makes it easier to remember all the facts. Dean hates it. He has continuously told her to stop doing it after an incident involving a maid who ignored the 'do not disturb' sign while they were out, and ended up calling the cops. That one required a quick getaway.

Jill turned and looked at Cas who was standing next to the window peering out towards the parking lot. It was starting to get dark. “Can you open the window Cas? I think there’s going to be a nice cool breeze tonight.”

The angel raised his hand and the window rose with it. “Thanks.”

She kicked off her shoes and slumped down into an armchair next to him, tucking her feet up underneath her. “Damn.” She muttered looking across the room.

“What’s wrong?” Cas asked, also peering across the room.

“My book’s way over there.” She motioned lazily before peering sideways up at Cas.

She saw him smirk slightly before crossing the room to grab her book from the bedside table. “The complete works of Sherlock Holmes.” He read, handing it to her as she smiled.

“A gift from Bobby when I was,” she thought for a moment, “my tenth birthday I think.”

Cas sat down at the table on the opposite side of the room. Jill was surprised. He didn’t usually hang around. “Actually, it’s the only real birthday present I think I’ve ever gotten.”

“Does that bother you?” Castiel asked, tilting his head slightly. Jill smiled, he reminded her of a puppy when he did this.

“Shhh.”

Jill peered over at the beds but it was impossible to tell which of her brothers had hushed them. Dean was lying on his stomach, faced buried in the pillow, while Sam was lying on his side with his back to them and an arm under his head. It was then that Jill remembered she had her own room now, and got up to grab her bag. She closed the window then gestured towards the door and Cas followed her outside. Carefully closing the door behind her Jill paused before asking, “Cas could you…”

Castiel nodded and waved his hand in front of the door. Jill heard the deadbolt lock behind it.

The number on her key was for number 11 which was three rooms down from her brothers. Her room was a little bit smaller, but still nothing to complain about. She chucked her bag down and opened the window. She was right about the breeze. There’s nothing like a cool breeze at night. She shivered a little, but it felt nice. “Which is your favorite?” Cas asked.

“Favorite?” Jill repeated, hopping on the bed and stretching out her legs. “Sit down.” Cas looked around awkwardly before choosing the armchair over the end of the bed. “Yes, favorite story in the book.”

“Oh.” Jill opened the book that was still in her hand and flipped through the pages. She often carried it around like a little girl clutches a favorite doll. “It’s impossible for me to choose, but I always liked the end of  _The Adventure of the Yellow Face_ because it turns out that Sherlock’s deduction was wrong, which rarely happens.”

“May I read it?” Castiel asked.

Jill stood up and walked over to where Cas was sitting to hand him the book. Before she got back to the bed he said, “Yes it was quite good.”

Jill turned around in amazement. “You read  _The Yellow Face_  in four seconds? I know it’s a short story but-”

“No I read the entire works.”

Jill shook her head in admiration. “If only.” She yawned obnoxiously much to Castiel’s amusement while climbing onto the bed.

“You are tired. I should be going.” He stood up.

“Okay” Jill yawned again. “Cas?”

“Yes?” He answered.

“It was nice talking to you.” She peeked over at him.

“And you Jill.” She smiled but Cas seemed to frown slightly. “You mustn’t worry about Mrs. Teller any more. She is in a happier place now.”

Jill gave him a confused look before remembering that he had ‘ _Inceptioned’_  her last dream.

“I will lock the door behind me.” Jill watched Cas cross the room and shut the door behind him. The lock quickly slid into place and Jill’s eyes suddenly became very difficult to keep open. Castiel’s tricks never got old. “Goodnight Jillian.” He whispered through the open window just as she fell asleep.

Cas stepped away from the room to the edge of the parking lot and glanced protectively at Sam and Dean’s door before a movement from the motel office’s window caught his eye. The light was off but Cas could see the distinct outline of a curtain moving back into place in front of the window. His gaze lingered for a moment before disappearing, with a frown, into the ether.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry about taking my time adding this chapter, the next one will be up very soon. Also I hope you don't mind the Sherlock referencing, that's my other obsession!


	7. Through the Window

_*THUD*_ Sam awoke with a start and sat straight up in bed. The room was dark, with only a little light sneaking in from the window. He threw the covers off and peered around the room. It was quiet except for Dean’s breathing in the next bed. Sam got up and ambled over to the bathroom door, running a hand through his bedhead. There was no light coming from under the door, but he knocked softly anyway. “Jill?” He whispered. Nothing. He opened the door but his sister was nowhere in sight. Frowning, he turned and grabbed his jeans from the end of the bed.

“Dean.” He said loudly, buckling his belt and looking around for his shoes. He sat on the edge of the bed to pull them on, and threw his pillow over his head at his older brother who hadn’t moved.

Dean jumped and rolled over to toss the pillow back. “Wha? What’re… where’s Jill?” Dean was throwing the covers off in a flash.

“Dunno. I heard a noise, I’m just going to have a quick look outside. You know how she likes her late night walks.” Sam answered making his way to the door.

Dean frowned. “Yeah, she probably went for another walk. I’ll text her.” He grabbed his cell from the end table. Sam reached the door and lifted his hand to unbolt it.

“Just ask her where…”

Dean looked up at Sam’s pause. “Yes?”

“If Jill went for a walk she wouldn’t have been able to bolt this door behind her.” He gave Dean a worried look that his big brother answered with a confused one.

“Well did we bolt it when we got in?”

“No way.” Sam answered. “Without Jill being here? And even if we did that means she hasn’t been here for,” he looked at the clock, 1:37 AM, “a few hours anyway.”

Now Dean was pulling on his boots. “Check the car, see if her stuff is there. Check the parking lot for signs of a struggle and maybe run out to the highway to look for anything suspicious. If you see people, ask if they’ve seen her.”

“What are you going to do?” Sam asked.

“I’m gonna talk to the guy that owns the place, see what he knows.” Dean answered.

 

 _*THUD*_ The sound frightened Jill out of her sleep. She sat bolt upright and immediately looked toward the window. It had slammed shut. _Shouldn’t have left it open._ She thought to herself, crawling out of the sheets and heading over to lock it into place. She had just reached the sill when there was a sound behind her. She spun around and gasped in shock as a figure emerged from the shadow of the bathroom door. “Oh my God, Cas!” She put a hand on her knee and shook her head before looking back up with a quick “sorry.” The angel didn’t frown like he usually did when she took the lord’s name.

“No I’m sorry Jill, didn’t mean to scare you.” She stood up walked to the door to turn on the light.

“It’s alright I should be used to you popping in by now.” She turned to smile at Cas who was staring at her intensely. Her smile wavered a little under the glare. His eyes often shone with intensity but his looks weren’t usually so, assertive. He took a step towards her.

 

Sam first went to the Impala and peered inside. He could see some of Jill’s belongings, a sweater and a few books. He wasn’t entirely sure what he was looking for though. He circled the car once then strolled across the parking lot, looking for signs of disturbed gravel, drag marks, anything that would suggest Jill had run into some trouble, but there was nothing. He looked up and across the lot and saw Dean making his way through the door of the office and decided to join him. The office was dark and unoccupied.

“Hello?” Dean called. No answer. Quick footsteps at the door behind him caused him to turn on a dime with his colt raised in front of him at the entrance.

“Whoa man, take it easy, its me.” Sam said, raising his hands.

“You’re supposed to be checking the parking lot.” Dean lowered his gun and continued looking around.

“I did, no drag marks, no disturbances, no blood-”

Dean looked back at Sam. “Well, that’s just GREAT!” He yelled, kicking the desk in front of him.

“Calm down, we’re going to find her.”

“Well this fucking guy isn’t here and she's not answering her damn phone! Probably stuck under another bloody log”

“Look I know I’m worried too. But Jill is smart and damn tough and I’m sure she is okay.” Sam put a hand on his brother’s shoulder.

Dean took a deep breath. “Call Cas.”

Sam sighed but took out his cell and pressed 3 on speed dial. “Put it on speaker.” Dean ordered. The phone rang five times and Dean was about to start cursing when Castiel answered. “Hello? _*beep* *beep* *beeeeep*_ Yes. Hello?”

“Castiel. It’s Sam and Dean. Where are you?”

“I am in consult with Balthazar at the moment. There is a matter of some missing heavenly weapons that needs-”

“That’s super duper Cas, have you seen Jill?” Dean interrupted.

“Jill?” Cas asked blankly. “Yes, I left her in her room not long ago.”

“Her room?” Sam asked.

Dean grabbed the phone and snapped it shut. “She got her own room! Here I am, worried sick! She’s probably getting a much better nights sleep than I-”

Sam frowned. “But she would hear her cell going off so much, wouldn’t she?”

“That kid would sleep through a tsunami.” Dean stormed out of the office and Sam followed, unconvinced. 


	8. Monster Meet and Greet

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you find this chapter exciting! Also if you guys are interested, I thought of the song Behind Blue Eyes by The Who while writing this chapter!

Castiel took a step towards her. “You alright Cas?” Jill tested. He stared at her. She noticed he wasn’t wearing his trench coat, just the black suit that was usually underneath it. Was it the same suit? A buzzing sound came from the table next to the bed and caught her attention. She passed Castiel slowly, not breaking eye contact with him. Peering down at her cell she could see it was lit up with  _6 missed calls from Dean Winchester_. As Jill reached down for her cell, fingers closed around her wrist firmly, startling her. She jumped and looked around at Castiel, his hand was wrapped tightly around her wrist and he still had a threatening look upon his face. “Leave it” was all he said. She wrenched her arm out of his grasp and jumped on the bed and over it to stand on the opposite side. Now Castiel was staring at her with something of a slight smirk on his face. Jill never knew him to smirk.

“What the hell.” Jill said aloud.

 _This is not Cas_. She thought, beginning to panic. _Could he be possessed? Oh God, why don’t I know if angels can be possessed?_

Castiel started to move around the bed towards her. “What are you doing?” She asked nervously and this time he laughed. Usually Jill loved to see Cas smiling, but this time it made her feel sick to her stomach. The maniacal grin was nothing like what she was used to seeing.

“He’s not your cousin.” Castiel raised an eyebrow, cockily, still smirking.

Jill looked at him confused. “Huh?”

He sighed and turned his head slightly. “The two of you are not related. You little liar.”

 _Move!_ Jill thought to herself. She was not in a good position, between the back wall of the room and the bed. He continued around the bed and when he was on the same side as she was, Jill jumped over it again, trying to create more distance. “I really am sorry for waking you. I was going to let you sleep a little longer.”

“Who are you?” Jill snarled, eyes narrowing. “ _What_ are you?”

“I am Castiel.”

“Who’s lying now?”

Castiel laughed again but stayed on his side of the bed. “Okay, maybe I’m not a celestial being.”

Jill glared at him, trying not to seem afraid. Trying not to let this thing feel superior.

Castiel shut his eyes and put his palm to his temple for a moment. “You usually sleep in your underwear.” He said when he opened his eyes.

Jill’s eyes widened despite herself. She had fallen asleep in her jeans, _thank God!_ But she did, usually sleep in her underwear or flannel PJ pants. _How the hell…_

“I don’t know what you’re talking about but you need to get the hell out of here before-”

“Before what Jill?” Castiel said, stepping up onto the bed between them. “Before big bros’ get here?”

Jill backed into the second bed that was behind her and felt a sharp pain just above her right ankle. She smirked a little.

“They aren’t coming Jill. I made sure to record in the book that you were in a room on the other side of the motel. If they are looking for you, its not in the right spot.”

Then Jill suddenly realized. _Obvious._

“Shifter.”

Castiel winked.

“But how are you, Cas?” Then she remembered. When she checked Cas in with her, the guy behind the desk had shook Castiel’s hand. That’s how he came in contact with the shape shifter. That’s how the thing could turn itself into him.

“You are underestimating my family.” Jill said, slowly moving sideways toward the end of the beds. “Big mistake.”

“We’ll see.” He said, stepping down from the bed in front of her.

“So now what?” She said, backing up.

He continued forwards, slowly and tauntingly. Gesturing to the wall behind her he replied, “You read the papers, you know what happens now.”

 “Oh yeah I know.” Jill began, trying to buy time. “This is the part where you have yourself a little massacre right? Let me guess. No one knows what its like to be the bad man?”

It was his turn to glare at her. “Maybe I don’t have a reason. Maybe I just like finger painting with the insides of pretty young things.” Castiel’s blue eyes flared.

Jill turned suddenly and sprinted towards the door. He was right behind her in a second and grabbed her shoulders, throwing her back across the room. She flew into the table and landed hard on the ground. She clenched her eyes shut from the pain, not wanting to cry out and give him any satisfaction. When she opened them a second later he was removing his jacket. He folded it and placed it on the bed.  _Cocky son of a bitch_. Was this what he had done to Mrs. Teller. To all of them? Jill rolled to her side and pulled her legs up to hug her knees as if in pain. As the shifter strutted towards her rolling up his white sleeves, she was reaching down to where she had a small silver knife holstered to her leg above her ankle. “This is going to be so much fun.” He grinned and reached down for her.

“My sentiments exactly.” Jill countered, and slashed his arm quickly. He screamed in pain as he jumped back, clutching his arm where the silver had cut him.

“You BITCH!”

There was a banging on the door. “Jill! Jill are you okay? Hang on!” Sam and Dean began pounding against the bolted door with their shoulders.

“When I said you were underestimating my family, you made two mistakes. First, thinking my brothers wouldn’t find me." She gave him a right hook to the jaw and his head shot back. "Second, thinking I would need them to.” He turned back and spat blood at her feet. “You think you can trust the angel? He isn’t honest with you!”

“Shut up!” Jill hit him again.

“His vessel, Jimmy. The one who’s thoughts I downloaded when I touched the angel. He knows things. Like how the angel knows where you are when you're supposed to be hidden from all of them. Oh it’s scandalous. He thinks like I do!”

Jill gave him a roundhouse kick to the torso, but the shifter was quick this time, grabbing her leg and spinning her onto the bed. She lost her grasp on the knife and it fell out of her hand.

“All of these memories!” The shifter climbed on top of her and she kicked underneath trying to buck him off, but he was heavier than her. “It’s just so sweet. You always smiling at him, gazing into his eyes like a little puppy.”

“Ugh.” Jill rolled her eyes and clenched her teeth.

“That’s right, I can see it all. It’s okay.” He leant down closer until he was next to her face and whispered in her ear, “I’ll just pretend it’s me you save your smiles for,” and he pushed his lips onto hers. She shut her eyes tightly, and tried to turn away. He was kissing her very forcefully, pushing her head against the bed. He released her mouth from his and put his hand over her face. She tried hitting him as he used his other arm to reach down beside the bed where the knife had fallen. He straightened up and sliced her hand with it. She drew it back at the stinging pain. He smiled down at her.

“The cavalry has arrived.” He looked toward the door, which was very close to giving in. Jill turned to look and saw Sam at the window. His eyes met hers and her brother’s widened in fear. The shifter turned back and breathed heavily on her face. “Once more for old times sake shall we?” He kissed her again but this time as he did it, he plunged the silver knife into her stomach. 


	9. Release

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry this took so long! Damn school getting in the way of what's important.

“JILL!” She heard her brother scream. She was still looking at the window but Sam ran back to the door to help Dean who was still trying to break it down. She shut her eyes and again struggled under the weight of the murderer. _No, no, no_. She thought, as she was immediately feeling weaker. This might be when a regular person really panics. When their life is on the line, slowly draining. But to Jill it was more of a hassle. _Shit_. If she died, her idiot brothers would do something idiotic and one of them would end up making a demon deal and the other one would end up risking his ass trying to pull her out of heaven or hell or wherever-   
  
It was then that she heard a gust of wind and opened her eyes. A trench coated Castiel was standing just behind his lookalike, staring down with a rage Jill had never seen on his face before. “Keep your eyes shut Jill.” He stated. The shifter was startled at the sound and Jill closed her eyes again, knowing what was about to happen. Castiel put his hand on the monster’s head. There was a loud ringing in Jill’s ears, a scream, and an exceptionally bright light filled the room shining through her closed eyelids. After a second, the light faded and she felt the weight lift off of her body. Opening her eyes she saw Cas pull the shifter up by his collar and let him slump, dead to the floor.   
  
He looked at her worriedly, eyes immediately dropped to her bloody torso. He made towards her but she pushed herself backwards on the bed and pointed at the door, clutching her abdomen and unable to speak. Cas waved his hand without looking away, and it unbolted. Sam and Dean smashed through, almost toppling over each other onto the ground. Cas stepped aside for them. Dean jumped on the bed behind Jill and let her lean backwards against his chest. Sam looked quickly at the dead form of Cas on the ground then up at the real Castiel, nodding in understanding, before dropping to his knees next to the bed in front of Jill and his brother.   
  
Jill felt a wave of relief at her brothers’ presence. “CAS!” Dean urged, pushing Jill’s back to straighten her up. Sam moved to the side and Cas stepped forward and laid his hand on Jill’s wound. She grimaced slightly, expecting more pain, but after a quick tightening sensation she looked down at her bloody shirt and reached underneath it where no knife wound could be found. She was perfectly healed. “Thanks.” She gasped and sat up straighter.   
  
“Want to lie down?” Sam stood up and moved around the bed to pull the pillows closer.   
  
“No, no I’m okay.” Jill made to stand up but Dean was still sitting behind her and had a firm grasp on her shoulders.   
  
“You were right.” He said.   
  
“What?” Jill sighed.   
  
“Buddy was a total Bates.” He laughed and threw his arm around her neck pulling her backwards. “Don’t do that again!” He warned. Sam let out a relieved laugh too before turning back to the body of the monster on the floor. Jill let out a deep breath and gave Dean a gentle elbow behind her. “Yeah ‘cause you two get to die all the time and I can’t even die once.”   
  
“Jill.” Castiel stepped forward again. “I came as soon as I knew something was wrong.”   
  
Jill glared up at him. “How did you know where we were?”   
  
“I was here earlier when you checked in-”   
  
“No I mean before that.” Jill interrupted. “Outside Mrs. Wu’s house, in the forest at the park, and all the other times. I thought we were warded against angels.”   
  
“Jill relax, Cas just saved your life.” Dean stood up and walked over to Castiel’s side.   
  
“Dean.” It was Sam’s turn. “We are warded against angels. I’d like to know too.” The three of them stared at the angel who was still watching Jill with a look of concern on his face.   
  
“You are warded against all angels, Sam.” Castiel looked at him. Sam nodded. “Dean too is hidden from all angels. Jill is hidden from most.” Jill continued to stare at Castiel and Sam raised his eyebrows.   
  
“Ahem.” Dean interrupted. “Uh, most angels, Cas. What the hell does that mean?”   
  
Castiel looked down at his feet as if feeling ashamed. “Well, I may have omitted a part of the Enochian sigils on Jill’s ribs that would hide her from, me.” Sam and Dean exchanged looks of surprise and Jill just frowned.   
  
“How come!?” She asked. Sam shook his head, stood up and wandered over to the fridge. Dean gave Jill a soft smack across the back of her head. “Ow! Get off!” She smacked him back, harder. “The shifter said not to trust you. That your vessel, Jimmy, ‘knows things’ and that you have been lying.”   
  
Castiel sighed. “As you know, my vessel is no longer occupied by Jimmy Novak’s soul, it is just me now. The shape shifter was picking up on memories from when Jimmy was still here. He could occasionally see what I saw, and knew that I had omitted part of the sigil from you, and also knew I probably shouldn’t have done so.” Sam came back in with a glass of water, interested in what Cas was saying.   
  
“I have a few questions actually.” Dean interrupted. Jill gave him an annoyed look. “How could a lowly shape shifter turn into an almighty angel of the lord anyway? Isn’t that a little above his pay grade?”   
  
“Shifters can turn into a lot of things, even other monsters, but no Dean, they cannot take the form of an angel. They can however, shift into the vessel the angel is inhabiting.”   
  
“So technically, it didn’t turn into you. It turned into Jimmy?” Sam offered.   
  
“Yes.”   
  
“But…” Jill was still frowning. “Would it have access to your memories too?”   
  
Castiel looked at her in wonder. “If it were a powerful enough shifter, it might. And this one was powerful, which is why I did not immediately recognize it in the office earlier. Had I been paying closer attention, I would have seen it for what it was, and saved you from this horrific event.” He moved closer to her with a distraught look on his face. “I am so sorry Jill.”   
  
“This is not your fault.” She said quietly, very aware of her older brother breathing down her neck and her other brother not offering her any damn water after almost dying!   
  
“I left the window open.” Castiel sat at the edge of the bed. “I know you said you liked the breeze but…”  
  
“No Cas, I left the window open. That’s on me. Not you. You saved my life. Thank you.” Jill reached forward and placed her hand over Castiel’s. He looked up and she gave him a genuine smile. He started to smile back.  
  
“Whoa, Whoa, WHOA!” Dean interrupted again, grabbing her around the neck in his arm and pulling her back in a headlock. “You fell asleep and left a GODDAMN window open have I taught you ANYTHING!?” Cas frowned at Dean’s use of the lord’s name in vain and Jill knew he was really himself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please tell me what you like and don't like!


	10. Bookmark

Jill couldn’t really sleep that night. They had gone back to Sam and Dean’s room. Cas got rid of the body for them and Jill didn’t ask about it. Her brothers tried to rush her out of the room pretty quick but she wouldn’t leave without her little silver knife. Dean found it under the bed and didn’t give it back to her right away. He went into the bathroom to clean her blood off of it first. Now she was lying in the bed furthest from the door, next to Sam, who she thought might have been pretending to sleep.   
  
She twirled the small knife in her fingers. It had belonged to her father, John, and it was very important to her. John hadn’t given it to her though. Bobby did, a couple of months after John was killed by the yellow-eyed demon. “Thought you might like to have something of his.” He had said. Jill already had a few things that had belonged to him, an old book on lore, a leather bracelet, and even a shirt. The knife was something that meant more to her. Even though her first hunt wasn’t with her dad. It was with Bobby. She had never told her brothers or her dad about it. _She was eight years old, her dad had dumped her at Bobby’s again, and a woman from Bobby’s neighborhood was having a ghost problem. He took her with him to the cemetery where the body belonging to the ghost was buried. She got to hold the flashlight while he dug up the grave. She peered down at the bones and wasn’t scared. When Bobby climbed out he wiped his dirty hands on his jeans and pulled out a book of matches. He glanced down at Jill. “Promise not to tell your daddy about this, okay?” “Okay!” He passed her the matchbook. She looked up at him in surprise. As he sprinkled salt and gasoline around the grave he gave her a wink and said, “Go ahead.” Jill struck a match against the book excitedly a few times before it lit, then tossed the flame into the coffin._

“You okay?” Sam whispered.

“Yeah, what time is it?” Jill whispered back, snapping out of her memory.

“Almost 4 A.M.” Sam answered. “We’ll give Dean a couple more hours then we’ll get out of here.”

“Okay.”

Both Jill and Sam managed to drift off to sleep for a couple of hours then all three Winchesters were awake and throwing their few belongings in the Impala. Sam stood in the parking lot leaning against the trunk of the car on his phone. He was playing Fed again, filling the local sheriff in on the killer’s latest victim, the motel owner. Jill went back to her room to grab the book Bobby had gifted her. She had to look for it as it was on the floor under the end table. She wiped a cobweb off that had been disturbed when the book fell. Jill almost bought a brand new copy of the collected works a few months earlier, but couldn’t bring herself to do it. Her copy’s pages were tattered, the spine cracked, and there was a chocolate milk stain on the back. But she loved it. Mostly because it had been Bobby’s. The cover had an inscription. _“For my son Robert on his Birthday, Love Mother.”_ Underneath that inscription, in Bobby’s newer, messier scrawl, read, _“For Jillian on her Birthday, Bobby.”_ She hugged it to her chest and turned to head outside but gasped at a figure in the doorway. “Apologies.” Castiel commented at Jill’s startle.

Jill sighed. “It’s okay.”

Cas stepped aside for Jill to walk outside. “I see you went back for your book.” He commented as they strolled toward the Impala and the brothers. He stopped and reached towards her. “May I?” He asked. Jill handed him the book and started to keep walking when his hand gently pulled back on her shoulder. She turned her head to see him holding a shiny, brand new copy. Jill gasped and snatched it away, throwing the front cover open anxiously. To her surprise the inscription was still there, exactly the same as it was, in Bobby’s handwriting. She breathed a sigh of relief. It was the same book, just a few milk stains and worn pages less. Cas was still trying to apologize for something he hadn’t done. Jill wondered how long it would go on for.

“Ready?” Dean asked tossing his duffel bag in the back seat of the Impala.

“Yep.” Jill answered. She felt a buzzing in her pocket and pulled out her cell. “Hang on, it’s Bobby. Hey Bobby!” She answered.

“Sure now you answer your phone.” Dean muttered. Jill started filling Bobby in on what happened and Cas walked over to Sam and Dean, looking back at Jill with some concern on his face. Sam noticed. “She’s okay Cas. She’s not _going_ to be okay, she _is_ okay. You don’t have to worry.”

“Yeah our sister’s one tough broad.” Dean added. Sam rolled his eyes.

“No, no, no, it’s okay, everything’s fine!” Jill was reassuring Bobby through the phone.

Cas turned back to Sam and Dean. “I felt such rage when I realized that monster was using my vessel’s form to torture Jill. It has taken so long already to gain her trust.” Dean snickered, remembering what a hard time Jill gave Cas when he first started coming around.

“Of course.” Jill wandered over and gave Dean’s arm a smack. “Ok, talk to you soon.” She handed Dean the phone. “He’d like to talk to you.”

“Oh great.” Dean grumbled, taking the cell. “Bobby! Yes. Yes sir. No sir. Bobby come on she’s fine…”

Sam raised an eyebrow at Jill. “He pissed?”

“Oh yeah.” Jill opened the back door of the Impala and jumped inside, accidentally slamming the door shut.

“Alright see you soon.” Dean hung up and tossed the cell through the window onto Jill’s lap. “You better not let me catch you slamming that door again.” He said sternly. “We’re heading to Bobby’s,” he added to Sam as he walked around the car to the driver’s side.

Sam smirked as he got in the passenger side. “Sounds good.”

“Hey Cas you coming for the ride?” Dean asked as the engine rumbled to life.

“Perhaps I will meet you there.” Cas replied. The angel leaned down to speak to Jill through the window. “Jill, I…”

“No chick flick moments!” Dean interrupted. “Cas we’ll see you at Bobby’s in a couple days.” He stepped on the gas and the Impala hurtled through the motel parking lot towards the road. Jill turned to look out the back window at Cas, but he had already disappeared. She turned back and pulled her book onto her lap. “Bobby give you trouble?” She asked innocently.

“You give me more trouble than that old man ever could.” Jill looked up into the rear view mirror and Dean winked back at her. She smirked and looked down at her book, opening it to find a long black feather in the crease of the pages. She took it out and twirled it between her finger and thumb. It was incredibly shiny and soft. She twirled it until the breeze from the open window and the rumble of the Impala made her finally drift off to sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Endings are hard. No really, I suck at writing endings. Sorry. Hope you liked the story!


End file.
